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Amazon's Tom Tom Club Store

Music

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Biography

In 1981, during a break from their band Talking Heads, Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth recorded the first Tom Tom Club record down in Nassau, Bahamas. Creating a funky hybrid of dance, soul and reggae with a completely different sound from Talking Heads, it was their first gold album. The first single from that album, “Wordy Rappinghood,” was an international smash. The second ... Read more in Amazon's Tom Tom Club Store

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Amazon.com

Talking Heads drummer Chris Franz and bassist Tina Weymouth formed Tom Tom Club to continue exploring the polyrhythmic experiments conducted on the Heads' Remain in Light release. On this self-titled debut, the husband-and-wife team mixed urban and arty new wave elements, generating two mammoth dance-floor hits. "Wordy Rappinghood" is a study in art-school rap as it percolates along with the help of funk beats and synthesized bleeps. The brilliant "Genius of Love" gives props to James Brown. A slow, slinky funk masterpiece, it includes call-and-response vocals, a rap, and a lilting melody. "L'Elephant" is a pure delight, rollicking like a nursery rhyme from some ultrahip daycare center. The band also tackles the doo-wop standard "Under the Boardwalk," though it feels like a mere novelty item. Still, Tom Tom Club proves that David Byrne wasn't the only genius in Talking Heads. --Steve Gdula

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

I remember buying the 7" 45 of GENIUS OF LOVE in junior high school and playing it until it literally wore out! The rest of this seminal, funky, ground-breaking "side project" is actually more groovy than many TH albums...TOM TOM CLUB was WAS and still IS way ahead of its time - so much so that people STILL sample tracks of this to score "hits" today...BUT I must ask, since the debut is on CD and all of Talking Heads CDs, WHY WHY WHY won't WB re-issued the SECOND and sadly OOP CD from TTC -"CLOSE TO THE BONE" - with equally infectious cuts like THE MAN WITH THE FOUR-WAY HIPS, PLEASURE OF LOVE, and more - this album NEEDS to be on CD, PLEASE!! (Amazing endearing kooky cover art on both LPs!)

This album, relased in the early 1980's was an early "cross over" that influenced most white funk/rap that would follow. Funk-meets-reggae-meets King Crimson. If you like Mariah Carey with the sound on, you may only like Genius of Love (a great song, yes, but one of many on this album). However, if you are a fan of the Talking Heads, Adrian Belew, Eno, etc., you are bound to love this record. If you are a fan of Belew's, this is a must have. He was essential to the sound of this record. As a sad note, I have read that he never was paid for his performance on this album. It may be dated, but it still plays like new.

Even if you didn't know about this pair's first spin-off away from the "Heads", chances are you at least heard the fits-all-stations-song "Genius of Love"- a song that captures the feel of the early 80s in so many different ways. That song epitomizes the rest of this album as well. A whimzical cruise through a series of songs designed to create a mood - and in that this CD is successful. A side of Talking Heads writing you rarely see in the shadow of David Byrnes writing dominance, with all due respect. This album sets a swanky mood that several other bands would successfully incorporate into successful tunes of their own - the least of which is Mariah Careys chart topping single "Fantasy" that adopted the "Genuis" melody some 10-12 years later. Tom Tom Club was one of those off the beaten path toys a lot of people liked to lay claim to. The CD really holds up to time, in style and production quality. A great listen. Highly reccomended to playing while you're doing things around the house.

Until I read the editorial review for this album , I didn't know that it was started by members of "The Talking Heads". But what I do know , is that this is one of the most original albums that I've ever heard. I lived in a rural town in North Carolina , when " Tom Tom Club " released it's self titled debut, and it was a visiting cousin that brought it down , from Brooklyn , New York. I remember falling in love with " Genius of Love" , and have been in love with the album every since. That was over two decades ago , and it's still funky and delivers some of the most refreshing beats , to this date. The only reason it gets only 4 stars , is because it's so far ahead of it's time that I still can't appreciate every song. Although, I'm not nieve enough , to believe that I never will. Aside from that...it's a great cd and if you allow yourself to forget that it was released in the early 1980's , I guarantee that whether you're driving to pick up diapers for your 2 yr. old , or getting out of jail.... you'll have fun....natural fun.

This is such a great CD. I was recently turned onto this CD by my aunt who lent me this. I originally liked it for "Genius of Love" and "Wordy Rappinghood" but now I have grown to like almost all of the songs on the CD. "Genius of Love" has been sampled to death by many artists, you can even find a list of all of them that have on the Tom Tom Club's website. I recommend this CD to many and all because it is a great experiment with sounds and rythyms that combine for an awesome musical experience! It's a must-have for anyone. I really recommend that you buy this CD because you'll have fun listening to it! Enjoy!

I think all the songs on the Album rock, not just Genius of Love. I find "Wordy Rappinghood" to be just as good and I like their remake of "Under the Boardwalk" It is not outdated it is classic. Listening to it puts a smile on your face.

Beginning life as an off-shoot from Talking Heads while David Byrne worked on a solo project, Tom Tom Club has endured for over twenty-five years on and off, and this debut album has remained a strong seller, though its follow-up, Close To The Bone, remains mysteriously unavailable.

Thanks to the electroclash movement Tom Tom Club sounds more contemporary now than it did a decade ago, and many of its hooks and beats have been sampled over and over. The best known tracks are the singles Genius Of Love and Wordy Rappinghood, though as they were initially signed by Chris Blackwell to the British Island label, Wordy Rappinghood was not released as a single in America at the time. It was a huge hit in Europe, though, and was revived not long ago by Chicks On Speed. The album works well as a whole, full of light and bounce and rhythm.

The CD of the 1981 album has been somewhat extended from the original vinyl release. The non-album 1982 single Under The Boardwalk, a funky reworking of the old Drifters tune, has been added, along with the remix of Lorelei that was on the 12" B-side. This was rather smoother and less quirky than the original. Very welcome bonuses are the excellent 12" remixes of Wordy Rappinghood and Genius Of Love.